Suffice to say that some time in 1987, Canadian alternative rock singer Lisa Dalbello released what is in my opinion her best album She. It was her fifth, most fully accomplished collection of new songs. She would go on to release only one more album nine years later. Tango, embedded above, is a perfect example of the new album's sound and style.
As strong as Tango is, it is hardly alone: there are several equally strong tracks on the collection, such as Baby Doll, Body and Soul and Immaculate Eyes. Listening to these songs, you get the impression that comparisons made at the time between Dalbello and Peter Gabriel were not that far fetched, although you could never hear Gabriel use his voice quite as aggressively as Dalbello did, particularly on Tango and Body and Soul. Essential alt rock of the era, with some regular pop thrown in for good measure.
Next comes the incredible September with four noteworthy releases, most of them semi-classics. From the start of the month, the worst was over for me in the army and I strongly associate the next four albums with the relief that autumn's somewhat easier period brought with it. It was grey, somewhat rainy, and the new music was truly great. Let's begin with the least important of the noteworthy September albums.
I already skipped the ludicrous The Final Cut (1983) by Pink Floyd, their weakest effort in a long, long time. On 7 September, its follow-up A Momentary Lapse of Reason came out. The internal fights of the supergroup had been solved by sacking Roger Waters, but while this new music turned out to be a slight improvement over that extremely sorry previous album, it still wasn't really anything special. The only track on the album that I really liked then and still do, is One Slip, embedded above.
Strange as it probably sounds, I actually preferred a pop album that also came out on 7 September, to Pink Floyd's latest - that's how far we have now come from the seventies. Said pop album was Actually by the British pop duo Pet Shop Boys. Sure, more than half of it is rubbish and if I hear It's a Sin one more time I am likely to become physically ill. But there are also moments of greatness on the album too, hidden away on the vinyl version's B side.
Mind you, there are already a couple of truly refreshing pop songs on the A side - I have nothing bad to say about What Have I Done to Deserve This? or Rent - but when the B side opener, Ennio Morricone composed It Couldn't Happen Here fades out in all its majestic sadness, the listener can't help but be completely blown away. And it isn't even the best track on the album; that one comes last. King's Cross, embedded above, is a stunning pop masterpiece and one of the best songs of the entire decade, regardless of genre. How Pet Shop Boys were ever able to create these two downbeat masterworks, I will never know. They were never able to repeat the greatness they displayed here.
Ten days later, on 17 September, a new Yes album called Big Generator came out. I already skipped (not quite as ludicrous as The Final Cut but nonetheless embarrassing) 90125 (1983), one of the group's weakest efforts. Big Generator saw them moving perhaps even further away from prog - but also from the intolerable pop of 90125. New guitarist Trevor Rabin seemed to be influencing the group to develop a more rocking sound than before. This is usually a bad idea for prog bands, but here it works surprisingly well.
Many fans hate Big Generator - I loved it from the first time I heard it. Sure, it is not as good as the seventies output but on the other hand it is one of those all too rare albums that doesn't have a single weak track, and Rabin's gleeful rock riffs are so refreshing and infectious. Shoot High Aim Low, embedded above, is perhaps not the best example to represent the album's overall style (that would be either the opening of Almost Like Love or the title track), but it is overall the strongest song on it. Be sure to hear also the incredible I'm Running, an enjoyably wacky orgy of prog hidden near the end of the album.
Finally, on 28 September, Depeche Mode released their new album Music for the Masses. Anticipation was high following the greatness of their previous effort Black Celebration, Album of the year 1986. Although I have grown to appreciate Music for the Masses, it felt like a slight disappointment at the time. It was in my personal power rotation in any case, but felt a bit cold, distant and alienating.
Never Let Me Down Again, embedded above, was the first single release and a small masterpiece. My other favorites include Behind the Wheel, To Have and to Hold and the instrumental album closer Pimpf. At the other end of the spectrum there were songs like Strangelove and Sacred that to me felt completely pointless and waste of space. For this reason, Music for the Masses doesn't reach my personal top three Depeche Mode albums that consists of Black Celebration and the group's next two albums that will be coming out in 1990 and 1993 and will be discussed then.
Next, it is time to bid farewell to Tangerine Dream, a long standing favorite. Their last truly good release was the soundtrack to the vampire film Near Dark, an early work by Academy Award winning director Kathryn Bigelow. The soundtrack album wasn't released until next year, but I count the movie's US premiere, 2 October, as the first public release of its music, so this is the point in time where it gets its deserved albeit brief mention.
Then, a four week pause followed. After the extremely busy early autumn, only two excellent album releases worth mentioning came out during the rest of the year, and they did so within the space of eight days. First, on 30 October, we received yet another piece of evidence that eighties was the greatest decade for pure, simple pop music. This was when George Michael released his masterpiece Faith, which contained three surprise favorites of mine.
Upon the 25-million copies selling megahit album's release, I particularly enjoyed songs like Father Figure or Monkey - the latter as the original album version, not the vastly inferior remix I've been hearing more recently. But perhaps the most deserving song to be embedded here is Hand to Mouth, which is not only a lovely pop song; it actually has something to say about the society we live in. Hence, you can listen to it above.
All right, this is it. The great music year of 1987 is almost over. It is time to discuss the last noteworthy album of this exceptional period. To do so, we will leave pop music behind and get reacquainted with the eccentric genius of David Sylvian. His artistically ambitious output already reached one landmark with last year's double album Gone to Earth. His new release, called Secrets of the Beehive and out on 7 November, was perhaps not quite its predecessor's equal, but close.
The best track of Sylvian's new album is, in my mind, the stunning Let the Happiness in that has been embedded above, accompanied by a fan made video. On this track, flugelhorn and trumpet are played by film composer Mark Isham. Listening to this peaceful song is a lovely way to end this year. Other highlights include the atmospheric short opening called September, and a longer track called Orpheus that appears in the middle of the album.
Best albums of the year list offers no surprises, as I have already written about the top two separately. Prog legends Yes appear as a close third. The greatest short track is obviously Suzanne Vega's undying classic Irounbound / Fancy Poultry. There are, however, no real candidates for the best long track category, so we will have to leave that one unawarded.
ALBUMS OF THE YEAR:
Dead Can Dance: Within the Realm of a Dying Sun
Suzanne Vega: Solitude Standing
Yes: Big Generator
UNMISSABLE TRACKS OF THE YEAR:
David Sylvian: Let the Happiness in
Dead Can Dance: Cantara
Dead Can Dance: Summoning of the Muse
Dead Can Dance: Windfall
Depeche Mode: Never Let Me Down Again
Depeche Mode: Pimpf
Depeche Mode: To Have and to Hold
Heart: There's the Girl
Marillion: Hotel Hobbies
Marillion: The Last Straw
New Order: 1963
New Order: True Faith
Pet Shop Boys: It Couldn't Happen Here
Pet Shop Boys: King's Cross
Pink Floyd: One Slip
Sielun veljet: Rakkaudesta
Suzanne Vega: Ironbound / Fancy Poultry
Suzanne Vega: In the Eye
Suzanne Vega: Wooden Horse (Caspar Hauser's Song)
Whitesnake: Still of the Night
Yes: Shoot High Aim Low
Best albums of the year, 1967 to 1987:
1967: Pink Floyd: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
1968: -
1969: Procol Harum: A Salty Dog
1970: Genesis: Trespass
1971: Genesis: Nursery Cryme
1972: Yes: Close to the Edge
1973: Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon
1974: Mike Oldfield: Hergest Ridge
1975: Electric Light Orchestra: Face the Music
1976: Genesis: A Trick of the Tail
1977: Yes: Going for the One
1978: Genesis: And Then There Were Three
1979: Robert Fripp: Exposure
1980: Talking Heads: Remain in Light
1981: Camel: Nude
1982: Rush: Signals
1983: Ozzy Osbourne: Bark at the Moon
1984: Rush: Grace Under Pressure
1985: Marillion: Misplaced Childhood
1986: Depeche Mode: Black Celebration
1987: Suzanne Vega: Solitude Standing
Best short tracks (under approx. 12 minutes):
1967: Pink Floyd: Bike
1968: Pink Floyd: Julia Dream
1969: Pink Floyd: Cirrus Minor
1970: The Beatles: The Long and Winding Road
1971: Genesis: The Fountain of Salmacis
1972: Gentle Giant: Schooldays
1973: John Cale: Paris 1919
1974: Mike Oldfield: Mike Oldfield's Single
1975: The Tubes: Up from the Deep
1976: Gong: Chandra
1977: Yes: Going for the One
1978: Genesis: Down and Out
1979: Barclay James Harvest: Play to the World
1980: Saga: Don't Be Late
1981: John Foxx: The Garden
1982: Laurie Anderson: O Superman (For Massenet)
1983: Brian Eno: An Ending (Ascent)
1984: Laurie Anderson: Blue Lagoon
1985: Talk Talk: Time it's Time
1986: Ultravox: All in One Day
1987: Suzanne Vega: Ironbound / Fancy Poultry
Best long tracks (Approx. 12 minutes or over):
1970: King Crimson: Lizard
1971: Van der Graaf Generator: A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers
1972: Yes: Close to the Edge
1973: King Crimson: Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part 1
1974: King Crimson: Starless
1975: Mike Oldfield: Ommadawn, Part 1
1976: -
1977: Yes: Awaken
1978: Popol Vuh: Brüder des Schattens, Söhne des Lichts
1979: U.K: Carrying No Cross
1980: Mike Rutherford: Smallcreep's Day
1981: -
1982: Mike Oldfield: Taurus II
1983: Mike Oldfield: Crises
1984: Jean-Michel Jarre: Ethnicolor
1985: Robert Fripp: God Save the King
1986: The Enid: The Change
1987: -
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